Anger - "Everybody Gets Angry"
Breaking It Down

(Literally & Figuratively)

Anger: small word, immeasurable ramifications. 

When channelled properly, it can be a positive trait.  For instance, prior to my severe injuries and limitations, when I got mad, I would exercise. 

I was already thin but there is a big difference between being thin and being fit. Thin people can be without muscle tone if they don't exercise. 

When I got into power walking 5 miles in 50 minutes,

5 and 6 days a week, as well as doing

other exercises, I got in such great shape

that I was actually able to discontinue

my blood pressure Rx for almost 2 years!

ANY break that you can take from prescription drugs, (regardless of if for chronic pain) is a huge health victory!

Another thing I'd do is clean.  Getting down on your hands and knees to wipe baseboards and behind toilets and getting up on chairs or a ladder to dust off the top of the fridge and sanitize kitchen cupboards and other such needs, make a place look and feel extra good as well as remove unhealthy dust and allergens.  

Mainly, prior to chronic pain, I was so busy and active that all-consuming anger wasn't an issue because active people typically don't get dragged down by largely unhealthy emotions such as anger, unless it is a symptom of a larger mental condition, and it can be.  More about that fact later.

I was fairly athletic but loved to play any sport whether I was good at it or not, because if I wasn't any good, I'd just laugh at how bad I was and still have a blast!

Bowling!  I'm awful at bowling but I absolutely loved throwing a ball down the lane, (gutters!)...but where it landed didn't matter; it was a very healthy physical release.  Throwing a heavy object repeatedly in a safe way such as bowling, is great for throwing away your stress!

I was good at baseball and softball and it is another great way to enjoy fun and exercise! 

When I didn't have the yard space and/or number of people to play this game, I hit the batting cages because swinging hard at the balls flying out of the machine is an excellent release for reducing and eliminating frustrations of the day and life in general, that need let go of in order for a person to feel their best.

Volleyball, loved it!  Jumping up as hard and high as possible to slam that ball just as hard, was another great stress release! 

Walleyball?  (Volleyball in a racquet ball court.) WHAT A BLAST! ***Be sure to check out the happy video below!***

Due to my severe cervical spinal cord and multiple disc damage, looking down is hard and grasping things makes my hands numb and my right shoulder damage makes means no more sports.

Hence, my injuries decimated every single of one of my favorite past time and "anger be gone" activities.

Reading?  Love it.  Favorite author?  Patricia Cornwell.  Until chronic pain took over.  Try reading her uber intelligently written books about Dr. Kay Scarpetta and see how long you last when you can't focus because of pain, pain pills, and poor sleep.  I couldn't get past the first chapter of her last book that I bought and I finally understood the frustration of those with severe ADD.

Thus, when severe injury and such vast limitations come along and a person can no longer do any "ADL" (medical chart abbreviation for "activities of daily living") to release or escape, life's frustrations, how does one not end up deeply frustrated and eventually, consumed by anger? 

The short and only answer would be GOD; but since I didn't read the Bible until 2015 to enjoy the kind of peace that only He and His Word can (and did) give me, I just got and stayed angry.

Frustrations that have no release eventually turn a normally happy, functional person into a human volcano and anger just sits in a person like lava, waiting for the right conditions to make it and them, blow. 

And when you become consumed by anger due to chronic pain, depression, anxiety, inactivity, financial burdens, and then add the numerous mood and mind altering Rx's that go with these conditions, (a.k.a. emotional lability) it takes nothing to set your fuse off because everything sets your fuse off! 

You don't just become angry,

you ARE just always angry. 

Another analogy would be a pot of boiling soup or sauce that has the lid on.  Eventually enough heat builds up that it will shake the lid and its contents will boil over. 

Regardless of whether it is a human boiling over or a pot of sauce, the results are the same: an unpleasant mess is left in its wake.

The REAL problem is that it is just one more unhealthy aspect that only serves to harm the angry person even more than those who may be in their vicinity when they get angry.  I.E.  You can escape an angry person, but they can't escape themselves. 

If you have never seen the movie "You Kill Me" starring Tea Leoni, Ben Kingsley and Luke Wilson, I hope you check it out and enjoy its quirky, crazy, and at times, pathetic but lovable characters as much as I did. (Its trailers truly don't do it justice!) 

Warning: Swearing does not offend me; if it does you, you may not enjoy this movie.  I haven't seen it for so long I don't recall for sure but I don't think it has any nudity. 

It's been years since I've seen it, so I may not have this quote exact, but I've not been able to find it online.  Regardless, its profound and simplistic truth, was so immeasurable, that years later I remind myself of it as needed. 

"Anger is like drinking poison and

hoping the other guy dies." 

A friend tells me that Ben Kingsley's character said "resentment", not anger; but since these two emotions are brothers, that when felt long enough, lead to each other, which word he said doesn't actually matter, because the point to focus upon is the utter profundity of the statement itself.

The only way to reduce & eliminate anger when you have no physical outlet

for doing so, is to work on increasing your

spiritual and physical health 

  to a point where you control your anger

vs.

letting anger control you. 

7 Simple Tips for Reducing

and Eliminating Anger Naturally:

1. Praying to God for His help and mercy on helping you to grow in the ways necessary to succeed in this essential health goal. 

I have begun to say this when challenged to contain myself:

"I can do all things through Christ

who strengthens me." 

Philippians 4:13  

Developing and/or having faith in Almighty God and His Holy Trinity is not always easy, but it is always worth it. 

For people who aren't sure if GOD exists, He DOES and you have everything to gain, by giving Him the benefit of the doubt, that He does indeed and turning to Him in faith. 

And if you don't, you have everything to lose.

Creating a wall altar in whichever room you spend most of your time, especially at night, is also very essential and beneficial to both your prayer life and your need to decompress.  Here is mine:

2. Anger management appointments with a psychologist or other counselor who specializes in this and will help you work through it without writing you prescriptions that in the long run will caues you new and often, worse health ills.

Anyone can drug out and get calm temporarily; but that will not serve you  and your health best in the long run, OR HEAL YOU.  ONLY ALMIGHTY GOD WHO MADE YOU CAN HEAL YOU.

Remember people, you don't go to the foot doctor

to get your heart checked...

so choosing a specialist

for your specific challenges,

who is great at what they do,

is key regardless of what you need.

Just remember, great doctors can help you

but only God can heal you.

3.  Learning to meditate and listening to music that illicits calming feelings in you. 

Niall of Niall Music in London has my favorite mediation music. 

And yes, it is considered New Age music; but prior to reading the Bible I was into that whole ungodly mentality as many are who do not read the whole Bible to understand its false premises.

That fact however does not take away from the beauty in Niall's heart that created blissful, relaxing music that Almighty God gave him the talents to create.

4.  Consciously realizing what triggers your anger by making an honest list and then consciously making every effort, every time, to not let yourself get there, using whatever works for you. Prayer being your best tool. 

Implementing deep breathing is very helpful to your health, stress, blood pressure, etc...It is taught in the free Niall Music sample guided meditation links found in the link above.

5.  Not setting yourself up for defeat on this topic by continuing to allow people who generate and/or perpetuate anger in you, in your life. 

If you have people that contribute to your anger issues and you can't eliminate them from your life, at least reduce contact until you make enough progress that when you are around them, you don't instantly give them the power to tick you off.  Easier said than done so when you achieve that level of anger management, CONGRATULATE yourself and celebrate by slapping them in the face!  Haha, JUST KIDDING!  I just want to make sure you are paying attention...:)   

When I quit smoking, I had to stop girl's night for two full months because drinking equalled smoking. 

When you truly want to improve your life badly enough,

you will make every change necessary

to set yourself up for success, if you want to.

6.  Holy Basil Extract - This miraculous herb is aptly named by having "Holy" as the first word! 

I was still on 10 Rx's when I began taking it as a natural solution for anxiety and depression. 

WOW!  It was SO EFFECTIVE

that it WORKED ON DAY ONE! 

It also allowed me to completely stop taking Cymbalta entirely,

vastly lower my Xanax usage, AND go back to its lowest dose! 

That's three major health victories!

Additionally, because I was so embarrassed to have these conditions and felt weak for having them, they contributed to my anger issues. 

Thanks to Holy Basil being such an immeasurable blessing at reducing and eliminating these conditions and their respective medications, by default, IT ALSO HELPED TO GREATLY REDUCE MY ANGER!

A FOURTH MAJOR HEALTH VICTORY!

If you are on an anti-depressant, please, please, PLEASE take 5 minutes to read this STB2G page

AND MAKE SURE that you read until you get

to the quotes by Dr. David Perlmutter: 

http://www.spinaltrapb2g.com/depression_shame_cymbalta_success

If you want to enjoy a vastly healthier quality of life, check out Holy Basil Extract. 

For more about how I take it,

the brand that I take, click:

 http://www.spinaltrapb2g.com/swanson_vitamins_review

7.  Create a peaceful environment in the rooms in your home in which you spend the most time.  This may involve hanging pictures that evoke peaceful feelings, lighting candles, playing soft music, keeping plants and flowers that make you smile, painting the walls a soothing color such as powder blue, soft yellow, pale peach, etc...or if painting isn't feasible, buying rugs, lamps, pillows, etc...in colors and patterns that you find peaceful. 

There are numerous

safe,

simple,

effective,

beneficial,

natural,

low cost

efforts

that every human can make

to change their environment

to have a more positive effect

on their mental and emotional status.

You know the expression,

"You are what you eat",

I believe you are what you live. 

What you say, see, hear and feel,

you are. 

Thus, say, see, hear and feel

good, happy, calm,

peaceful and other positive,

healthy things to be those things.

This can also include changing the type of TV shows and movies you watch as well as not watching news to the extent that it leaves you negative, depressed and depleted.  Notice I didn't say, don't watch the news, I simply said don't overdo it.

Again, as in all things, not every angry moment is bad or unhealthy.  Anger can be a positive thing when it is motivating as stated above and channeled appropriately and/or indirectly. 

If you suffer anger, work on it faithfully, daily and you will be able to manage it.  I'm not saying you won't ever get angry again; that's absurd, but there is such a huge difference between flying off the handle at things that don't matter and having righteous anger.  To learn more about righteous anger, read the bible.  (PROVERBS ROCKS!!!  It has a lot to say about anger!)

Focus on what makes you happy! 

You can be grateful or you can be hateful,

it really is up to you!

You will be much healthier when you get to a place where it becomes the exception and not the rule.  By default, so will those who love you, live with you, work with you and are stuck in traffic next to you...

Also, if you suffer anger and are ashamed of it, let yourself off of the hook with this tidbit.  When I asked the psychologist why he chose to specialize in anger management, he smiled knowingly and said "Everybody gets angry."  I felt better instantly!

Anger vs. Rage

To me, anger is a far more common emotion than rage and although unhealthy, not as dangerous as rage. 

Rage is what anger becomes when the anger

is out of control; like gasoline on a fire.  

I know a guy who is always so quick to explode in rage that is so far over the top for what set him off, that I made the observation and comment to him once that he is the only person I know who is as angry after a work-out as he was before.  (And no, he is not on steroids so it isn't "roid rage".) 

I didn't say this to upset him, but rather, in hopes that he would realize the sad truth of this statement so that he can see a doctor, get blood work and/or whatever testing is appropriate and make whatever life adjustments are necessary to being much healthier and in peace.

I have no training or education on such matters, but I found it so excessive that I did some reading and found there is a condition called "Intermittent Explosive Disorder" that appeared to describe this behavior very well. 

If you begin to date someone who exhibits

such behavior, RUN.

You are in for a nightmare

of a relationship and life.  

Mayo Clinic has a good article about it. It contains a lot of enlightening information inlcuding this:

[History of other mental health disorders. People who have antisocial personality disorder, borderline personality disorder or other disorders that include disruptive behaviors, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), have an increased risk of also having intermittent explosive disorder.]

To read their entire article, click this link:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/intermittent-explosive-disorder/basics/definition/con-20024309